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Bangalore, Oct. 22 Loaded with a $700-million debt on its balance sheet, Wipro Ltd is now looking at conserving cash to fuel its growth initiatives. The company has not declared any interim dividend for fiscal 2009. It currently had a cash reserve of $300 million.

“Our objective is to conserve cash to meet any growth opportunities,” said Mr Suresh Senapaty, Chief Financial Officer, Wipro Ltd.

“Earlier we had given interim dividend as we had cash and had even increased the pay-out ratio,” he said.

He said a sufficient cash reserve would enable the company to explore suitable opportunities.

“If we have cash we can think about the opportunity when it comes, which would not be possible if we do not have the reserve.”

Wipro, Mr Senapaty said, was looking at several organic and inorganic growth options to drive its growth as it aimed to be among the top ten IT services companies in the world.

“We are looking at strengthening our consulting capabilities and expand our presence in Continental Europe through acquisitions. The market is attractive and assets are available at affordable prices, and we could do something different,” Mr Senapaty said. Wipro is in talks with several companies for potential buy-outs, Mr Senapaty said without disclosing any details.

Wipro had 97,552 employees at the end of September quarter that included 75,748 employees in IT services and 21,804 in BPO business.

The company added 3500 employees in the last quarter, of which two-thirds were campus hires. For the next fiscal, it has given 8,000 campus offers, said Mr Pratik Kumar, Head of HR. Lateral hiring would depend on the demand, he added.

It reported involuntary attrition of 2.5 per cent during the quarter, the highest in the past six quarters.

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